(a) Any person who shall, in connection with absentee
voting in any election held in this State, do any of the acts or things
declared in this section to be unlawful, shall be guilty of a Class I felony.
It shall be unlawful:

(1) For any person except the voter's near relative or
the voter's verifiable legal guardian to assist the voter to vote an absentee
ballot when the voter is voting an absentee ballot other than under the
procedure described in G.S. 163-227.2; provided that if there is not a near
relative or legal guardian available to assist the voter, the voter may request
some other person to give assistance;

(2) For any person to assist a voter to vote an
absentee ballot under the absentee voting procedure authorized by G.S. 163-227.2
except as provided in that section;

(3) For a voter who votes an absentee ballot under the
procedures authorized by G.S. 163-227.2 to vote that voter's absentee ballot
outside of the voting booth or private room provided to the voter for that
purpose in or adjacent to the office of the county board of elections or at the
additional site provided by G.S. 163-227.2(f1), or to receive assistance except
as provided in G.S. 163-227.2;

(4) For any owner, manager, director, employee, or
other person, other than the voter's near relative or verifiable legal
guardian, to (i) make a written request pursuant to G.S. 163-230.1 or (ii) sign
an application or certificate as a witness, on behalf of a registered voter,
who is a patient in any hospital, clinic, nursing home or rest home in this
State or for any owner, manager, director, employee, or other person other than
the voter's near relative or verifiable legal guardian, to mark the voter's
absentee ballot or assist such a voter in marking an absentee ballot. This
subdivision does not apply to members, employees, or volunteers of the county
board of elections, if those members, employees, or volunteers are working as
part of a multipartisan team trained and authorized by the county board of
elections to assist voters with absentee ballots. Each county board of
elections shall train and authorize such teams, pursuant to procedures which
shall be adopted by the State Board of Elections. If neither the voter's near
relative nor a verifiable legal guardian is available to assist the voter, and
a multipartisan team is not available to assist the voter within seven calendar
days of a telephonic request to the county board of elections, the voter may
obtain such assistance from any person other than (i) an owner, manager,
director, employee of the hospital, clinic, nursing home, or rest home in which
the voter is a patient or resident; (ii) an individual who holds any elective
office under the United States, this State, or any political subdivision of
this State; (iii) an individual who is a candidate for nomination or election
to such office; or (iv) an individual who holds any office in a State,
congressional district, county, or precinct political party or organization, or
who is a campaign manager or treasurer for any candidate or political party;
provided that a delegate to a convention shall not be considered a party
office. None of the persons listed in (i) through (iv) of this subdivision may
sign the application or certificate as a witness for the patient.

(5) Repealed by Session Laws 1987, c. 583, s. 8.

(6) For any person to take into that person's
possession for delivery to a voter or for return to a county board of elections
the absentee ballot of any voter, provided, however, that this prohibition
shall not apply to a voter's near relative or the voter's verifiable legal
guardian;

(7) Except as provided in subsections (1), (2), (3) and
(4) of this section, G.S. 163-231(a), and G.S. 163-227.2(e), for any voter to
permit another person to assist the voter in marking that voter's absentee
ballot, to be in the voter's presence when a voter votes an absentee ballot, or
to observe the voter mark that voter's absentee ballot.

(b) The State Board of Elections or a county board of
elections, upon receipt of a sworn affidavit from any qualified voter of the
State or the county, as the case may be, attesting to first-person knowledge of
any violation of subsection (a) of this section, shall transmit that affidavit
to the appropriate district attorney, who shall investigate and prosecute any
person violating subsection (a). (1979, c. 799, s. 4;
1983, c. 331, s. 2; 1985, c. 563, s. 4; 1987, c. 565, s. 7; c. 583, ss. 8, 10;
1995, c. 243, s. 1; 1999-455, s. 3; 2005-428, s. 5(b); 2007-391, s. 29(a); 2013-381,
s. 4.6(a); 2014-111, s. 15(a).)